Project Safe Childhood

Project Safe Childhood (PSC) is a Department of Justice initiative launched in 2006 that aims to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children. The threat of sexual predators soliciting children for physical sexual contact is well-known and serious; the danger of perpetrators who produce, distribute, and possess child pornography is equally dramatic and disturbing. The Department of Justice is committed to the safety and well-being of every child and has placed a high priority on combating sexual exploitation of minors. Through a network of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and advocacy organizations, PSC coordinates efforts to protect our children by investigating and prosecuting online sexual predators. PSC is implemented through a partnership of U.S. Attorneys; Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task forces; federal partners, including the FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Marshals Service; advocacy organizations such as the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children; and state and local law enforcement officials in each U.S. Attorney’s district. Between 2002 and 2009, over 220 individuals have been charged and convicted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Nevada with crimes involving the use of the internet to exploit children. These crimes include: manufacturing, transporting, and receipt of child pornography, online enticement of children for sexual acts, and traveling with the intent to engage in sex with a minor. Most of these individuals have been sentenced to lengthy periods of federal imprisonment without the possibility of parole.